SoftBank Raises $11.1 Billion in Bond Sale to Fund OpenAI Investment

SoftBank Group has raised $11.1 billion through a major dollar- and euro-denominated bond offering as the Japanese technology investment giant builds up cash to finance its expanding artificial intelligence investments, including its commitment to OpenAI.

According to a regulatory filing on Thursday, SoftBank issued three tranches of dollar-denominated senior notes. The company sold $1 billion of 3.5-year bonds carrying an interest rate of 8.625%, along with $4.5 billion of 5.5-year notes paying 9.25%.

SoftBank also issued another $4.5 billion in senior notes with a 7.5-year maturity and a 9.75% interest rate.

In Europe, the company raised an additional €1 billion through two senior bond offerings. The euro-denominated debt consisted of €500 million in four-year notes yielding 7.125% and another €500 million in six-year bonds carrying an 8% yield.

The fresh financing is expected to help SoftBank fund the final $10 billion portion of its $30 billion investment commitment to OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. Once that tranche is completed, SoftBank's total investment in OpenAI is set to reach $64.6 billion.

The financing underscores SoftBank's aggressive push into artificial intelligence as the company channels substantial capital toward businesses and infrastructure tied to the rapidly expanding AI industry.

The latest international bond sale follows another significant fundraising move by SoftBank earlier this month. The company issued 1 trillion yen, equivalent to approximately $6.32 billion, in corporate bonds targeted at individual investors in Japan.

Together, the debt offerings give SoftBank additional financial resources as it pursues large-scale AI investments. The company's growing exposure to OpenAI reflects its broader strategy of positioning itself around artificial intelligence technologies that it expects to play an increasingly important role across the global technology sector.